Common Questions.

An annuity is a long-term contract with an insurance company designed to help you grow and protect your retirement money. Depending on the type, it can offer guaranteed income, market protection, or tax-deferred growth.

Yes, annuities are considered safe and conservative retirement vehicles. Your principal is protected in fixed and fixed indexed annuities. They are regulated, backed by the issuing insurance company, and come with guarantees defined in the contract.

You can access funds through:

• Income payments for life
• Scheduled withdrawals
• Lump-sum withdrawals
• Rider-based income benefits

Many annuities, especially fixed and fixed indexed, have no direct fees unless you add optional riders. Riders typically cost 0.95%–1.5% annually depending on the benefit. Surrender charges can apply only if you withdraw more than your free-withdrawal amount during the surrender period.

An IUL is a permanent life insurance policy that provides lifelong coverage, a tax-free death benefit, and a cash value account that can grow based on a market index  without exposing your money to market losses.

No. IULs come with a 0% floor, meaning even if the index performs poorly, your credited interest will never be negative.

Your principal and previously credited gains are protected from market downturns.

Your cash value earns interest tied to the performance of an index, subject to:

• Caps (maximum potential credit)
• Floors (minimum 0%)
• Participation rates (percentage of index gains credited)

Yes. You can access cash value through:

• Policy loans (tax-free if structured properly)
• Withdrawals
• Using the cash value to help pay premiums

Our clients use IULs for tax-advantaged retirement income, emergency funds, or opportunity funds!

Yes, but they vary by carrier and policy design. Typical costs include:

• Cost of insurance (COI)
• Administrative fees
• Index strategy charges (optional)
• Loan interest if you borrow against the policy

Yes — you can roll funds from a 401(k), 403(b), or TSP into an annuity, as long as the annuity is IRA-qualified (Traditional IRA or Roth IRA).

This allows the money to move tax-free, because it stays inside the retirement system.

However, you cannot directly roll qualified retirement money into an IUL, since IULs are life insurance products and not IRS-qualified plans. To fund an IUL, the money must come from:

• After-tax personal funds. 
• A strategic withdrawal/rollover from a retirement account with taxes properly planned so it does not trigger penalties.

Our clients roll their employer retirement plans into annuities because:

• Annuities can guarantee income for life. 
• Market volatility no longer affects income. 
• Riders can provide increasing payouts, long-term care benefits, and death benefits. 
• They maintain tax-deferred growth inside a qualified IRA annuity. 

This gives retirees the one thing a 401(k), 403(b), or TSP cannot:

 Predictable, guaranteed income that they cannot outlive.

Clients pair IULs with qualified plans because each solves problems the other cannot.

IUL Benefits:

• Provides tax-free retirement withdrawals.(via policy loans)
• Protects cash value from market losses.
• Creates a tax-free bucket to help offset required minimum distributions. (RMDs)

Retirement Plan Benefits (401k/403b/TSP):

• Tax-deferred accumulation
• Employer matches
• Large contribution limits

Integration Strategy:

Many clients build a multi-bucket retirement plan:

1. Grow pre-tax dollars in a 401(k)/403(b)/TSP
2. At retirement, roll those funds into a fixed indexed annuity for guaranteed income
3. Use an IUL for tax-free income and legacy planning
4. Blend both to reduce taxes, increase income stability, and protect against market volatility